Meningitis outbreak: Ameridose announces massive layoff

Nov. 9, 2012

Ameridose, one of the nation’s largest suppliers of compounded drugs, said Thursday it is laying off hundreds of workers because it expects to emerge from an ongoing investigation as a smaller company. / AP / Metrowest Daily News / Marshall Wolff

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The Tennessean

Ameridose, one of the nation’s largest suppliers of compounded drugs, said Thursday it is laying off hundreds of workers because it expects to emerge from an ongoing investigation as a smaller company.

Ameridose, which has common ownership with the compounding lab that made the medicine blamed for a national outbreak of fungal meningitis, had already shut down operations and recalled all its products. Those actions disrupted the supply of commonly used medicines already on drug shortage lists, a problem that the head of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said is expected to persist.

“FDA has identified a number of Ameridose products — including drugs used during surgery and to treat medical conditions that include congestive heart failure — that were on the current drug shortages list before the recall,” said FDA Commissioner Margaret A. Hamburg. “We also know that the supply of other drugs may be affected by the Ameridose recall.”

The FDA is asking other makers of the drugs to ramp up production, saying it will expedite applications of others to produce medicines in short supply.

Ameridose has notified 790 employees of pending layoffs, including 140 employees of an affiliated marketing company.

“It was the company’s expectation that the suspension of operations would be temporary in nature and that we would be able to fully resume operations in a short time period,” Geri A. Weinstein, director of human resources for Ameridose, wrote in notice letters to employees. “While we continue to expect to resume operations, we have now determined that because of the continued inspection by state and federal authorities it may be necessary to resume operations at a reduced level.”

The layoffs will begin today.

Ameridose has a contract with HealthTrust Purchasing Group — based in Brentwood and partially owned by Nashville-based hospital chain HCA — to provide member hospitals with sterile compounded drugs and repackaging services.

New England Compounding Center, which has common ownership with Ameridose, is the source of steroid medication linked to fungal infections that have sickened 425 nationwide.